Field

South and Southeast Asia

Research Interests

Geoffrey Robinson received his BA from McGill University in Canada, and his Ph.D. from Cornell University, where he studied modern Southeast Asian history and politics with Professors George McT. Kahin and Benedict O’G. Anderson. In 1995, he was awarded a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of British Columbia, Canada, and in 1996 he spent a year in Sweden as Visiting Scholar at Stockholm University’s Center for Pacific Asia Studies. Since joining UCLA’s Department of History in 1997, he has regularly taught undergraduate lecture courses on early and modern Southeast Asia, as well as a range of undergraduate and graduate seminars on Indonesia and East Timor; Political Violence and Genocide; and Human Rights in Asia.

His book, The Dark Side of Paradise: Political Violence in Bali (1995), was the first of a number of research projects undertaken on issues of political violence, popular resistance, human rights, and U.S. foreign policy in Southeast Asia. Recent publications include articles on political violence in East Timor, the history of the Indonesian armed forces; the roots and significance of non-violence movements in Burma and East Timor; and the origins and persistence of political violence in Aceh. Professor Robinson’s current projects include a monograph about the U.S. role in the 1965 coup and massacre in Indonesia and a book, written in the form of a memoir, about the 1999 UN-sponsored referendum in East Timor.

Professor Robinson brings a good deal of practical experience to his teaching and research. From 1989 to 1995 he was Head of Research for Island Southeast Asia at Amnesty International headquarters in London. In that capacity he wrote two monographs and many shorter reports on human rights conditions in Indonesia, East Timor, and the Philippines. Since leaving Amnesty International in 1995, he has continued to work on human rights and humanitarian issues, both independently and as a consultant to various international organizations. From June to November 1999, he took leave from UCLA to serve as a Political Affairs Officer with the United Nations in East Timor.

Selected Publications

East Timor 1999: Crimes Against Humanity. Report commissioned by the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. Jakarta & Dili: HAK Association & Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy, 2006.

Alongside our existing 12 sub-fields, the History Department supports a number of cross-field clusters. The clusters are intended to attract students and faculty to important themes and current in the historical discipline. The clusters will offer new courses, sponsor outside speakers, and convene Department-based workshops and seminars.